New User - Old Mistake...

[Jembo]

Hi all

New to this site as only bought the car three days ago and sadly not a particularly happy arrival...

Bought the car and all seemed fine for the first 3 days just booting around generally without even taking it out of 2WD.

Then a bit of rain and out in the sticks to walk the dogs thought I'd experiment with the 4WD (haven't got a manual but thought it can't be that complicated - 1st mistake of the day).

Back on the road, must be a press of the button to get it back to 2WD surely? Wrong, or at least it didn't work for me (no manual - my Japanese is not too good anyway), so I'm busy trying to get it back into 2WD again, the drive display on the dash flashed on and off - not a great sign I guess, but having heard that you could change between 2WD and 4WD while doing up to about 40mph I tried in vain to rectify while on the move.

After about a couple of miles (on the road) I pulled over to see if I could get it sorted at a standstill and then I smelt it...

Front left something very amiss - oil or transmission fluid all over the place, on the right side of the engine (as you look at it with the bonnet up) not a pretty sight.

Anyway I went no further and got myself put on the back of a truck and taken to the dealer to check in for help on Monday morning.

I've now found this site and read about all the novices (i.e. me!) who happily drive around in 4WD on the road... Any ideas on whether I've done any serious damage or what? And also can someone give me presise (i.e. dumb-arse) instructions on how I should have been trying to get the thing between 4WD and 2WD (just the high ratio change), for when I do get it sorted...

Thanks in advance to all and I hope to make a more positive posting in the not too distant future...

Jem

[That Ruddy Squirrel]

Jem,

We would give advise but ................

What vehicle are we talking about ?

There is a big difference between 2nd and 3rd gen surfs as regards 4wd use.


Trev

[Jembo]

Jem,

We would give advise but ................

What vehicle are we talking about ?

There is a big difference between 2nd and 3rd gen surfs as regards 4wd use.


Trev

Sorry - '96 3.0 turbo diesel auto (SSR-X)
Any help much appreciated.
Cheers
Jem

[dirtydog]

if its a 2nd gen like mine you might have to reverse to get it out of 4wd.
not sure about the fluid leak though...

[That Ruddy Squirrel]

Thanks Jem,

As I understand it the 96 is a 3rd gen and should be able to driven on the road in 4wd without problems, although I am not sure as to what speed limitations apply.


Trev (2nd gen owner)

[osker]

Perhaps the 4x4 is not the source of the problem .. I'm no expert though. Some real knowledge will kick in soon I'm sure....

[marky]

Thanks Jem,

As I understand it the 96 is a 3rd gen and should be able to driven on the road in 4wd without problems, although I am not sure as to what speed limitations apply.


Trev (2nd gen owner)

Borderline as to which model it is. It could be either

[Morr]

As Marky says, its borderline, a 96 could be a late registered 2nd gen or the first year of the 3rd Gens.

If you have a lift up tailgate, then its a 3rd Gen. 3rd Gen Surfs (but not all 3rd Gen 4Runners) can use 4wd pretty much all of the time

If you have a drop down tailgate then its a 2nd Gen and 4wd must not be used under normal road conditions

Have a look here for more info on how the modes work

[Jembo]

As Marky says, its borderline, a 96 could be a late registered 2nd gen or the first year of the 3rd Gens.

If you have a lift up tailgate, then its a 3rd Gen. 3rd Gen Surfs (but not all 3rd Gen 4Runners) can use 4wd pretty much all of the time

If you have a drop down tailgate then its a 2nd Gen and 4wd must not be used under normal road conditions

Have a look here for more info on how the modes work

Hi all

Thanks for the input. Just got the beast back from Toyota yesterday, with a scary bill / a massive 61 Euros / just a blocked pipe of some sort. Phew - is everything about Hiluxes this cheap??? Hope so.

Only concern is taht they didn't seem to have any bright ideas about the spillage of fluid. Is there a hydraulic aspect of the 4WD system, and if so does anyone know if there's anywhere it'll flie out at a rate of knots in the event of a blockage???

By the way it is a 3rd gen as it has a lift-up tailgate.

One other thing. Under braking there's quite a lot of vibration through the steering wheel - is this common or do I need the discs looking at?

Cheers
Jem

[Bogus]

I dont have a 3rd Gen but doubt that your judder is common. I doubt that its common to any car. First thing I would do is look at the discs. If they are ok then Id come here and seek out the clever members.
Look at the discs, it doesnt take long and it eliminates the easy stuff.

Bogus

[geordie john]

hi
ive noticed a judder on mine when braking from speed, had same thing on last two motors put new discs on, sorted, so new discs and pads to be fitted a.s.a.p
cheers johnno

[TonyN]

It takes a while sometimes to get out of 4wd, especially if it hasn't been used often, try stopping and reversing while turnign the steering wheel if it refuses to select afterr a couple of minutes, You will be perfectly fine using 4WD on a 3rd gen as long you are only pressing the button, not shifting the lever down to H4L or L4L, these setting lock the t/case making it the same as a 2nd gen in 4wd.

It won't select if your doing over 100km/h

As for the oil, I can't think what of that side of the car apart from the oil filter, need a bit more info. The 4wd system is all vacuum/electrical operated.

Juddery steering under braking is 99% of the time warped discs.

[Jembo]

It takes a while sometimes to get out of 4wd, especially if it hasn't been used often, try stopping and reversing while turnign the steering wheel if it refuses to select afterr a couple of minutes, You will be perfectly fine using 4WD on a 3rd gen as long you are only pressing the button, not shifting the lever down to H4L or L4L, these setting lock the t/case making it the same as a 2nd gen in 4wd.

It won't select if your doing over 100km/h

As for the oil, I can't think what of that side of the car apart from the oil filter, need a bit more info. The 4wd system is all vacuum/electrical operated.

Juddery steering under braking is 99% of the time warped discs.

Thanks for that - thick as I am when it comes to cars, that's what I'd figured it would be. Is there any way of easily spotting that the discs are warped? I'm coming back to the UK in January so will probably wait until I'm back to get it fixed, unless anyone can tell me that it's something that I need to have done urgently...

The oil thing has me a little concerned () . There was definately a leak or expulsion of some sort of fluid when it broke down with the 4WD problem - the moment I pulled over there was a load of white smoke rising above the front left wheel where the spillage was and it was very clearly fresh at the time (dripping down a little even), but now we're a couple of weeks down the line it is clearly not oil...

The dealer has had a look around there and tells me that there's no need for concern, but I've been out here long enough to trust no-one....

cheers
Jem

[andycook]

if you have a leak
I would check level of fluid in all reservoirs

e.g. clutch if a manual reservoir
brake fluid reservoir
coolant (in radiator and expansion tank)
powered steering fluid reservoir
windscreen wash!
gearbox, engine oil, front differential, transfer box fluid levels

if fluid is being lost, one of these must be getting low!